News & Events

Colorado Dept. of Water Resources Selects Mi-Forms to Automate Field Inspections

Paper and electronic forms to be optimized for use on mobile devices for use in the dam inspections.

DURHAM, NC, and Denver, CO– Mi-Corporation, the Mobile Information Corporation, today announced that it was selected by Colorado Department of Water Resources (Denver, CO) to provide an enterprise inspection software platform with its Mi-Forms mobile forms software. The project entails evaluating the platforms ability to digitize paper and electronic forms used in the dam inspection.

Each day inspectors from the Colorado Department of Water Resources evaluate the structural stability of the dams throughout the state, of which there are over 1,900. During each visit, inspectors record information such as which elements of the dam are not up to code and what needs to be done to fix these issues.

Under the current system, inspectors either take notes in a field book or bring paper forms to the inspection site. Many times, these paper forms get lost, wet, dirty, or ripped. Upon completing the paper form by hand, the inspector will enter the data into a database once back in the office and transmit it to the branch chief via email. This process was susceptible to data inaccuracies, and delays in data recording. With the “inspection forms automation” provided by Mi-Forms mobile data capture software, this process may change.

Functionality Requirements

The forms platform was required to support mobile data collection and deliver the ability to convert the existing paper forms into mobile forms that could be filled out on a tablet device and handle data entry via handwriting recognition and, optionally, speech to text recognition. The software will also provide workflow management by routing forms to a supervisor who will review the forms for accuracy and then either approve or deny the form.

Colorado Department of Water Resources selected Mi-Forms mobile forms software due to its ability to meet the project’s core requirements – automating processes, providing handwriting functionality, and integrating forms rules. Just as important was the ease with which remote workers or field inspectors could access the daily status report form to capture, store, and manage inspection and comment history, in a way that allows them to select specific projects and date ranges from which to view comments.

Accurate reporting of details is essential to project planning. The new system works whether the inspector is on or offline and will store the daily status report data in a relational database allowing the department to export the data to a “project tracking” system on a daily basis. The new solution will export the data from the daily status report and save the file on a network file share when the inspection supervisor approves the report. At the completion of a project, the system will generate a PDF report containing the inspection history from the daily reports.

Additional requirements for the forms automation solution included:

Offline use of forms where an Internet connection is required only for data transfer to the database for handoff to “project tracking”

An easy-to-use interface that includes a “home page” that gives the inspector the ability to select specific forms to complete

Configuration of forms to include drop-down boxes, mandatory fields and date pickers

According to Mi-Corporation’s VP of Sales & Marketing, Gautham Pandiyan, “The ability to meet the requirements of the Colorado Department of Water Resources demonstrates our ability to deliver the most flexible, robust technology that meets the unique needs of our customers who rely on the accurate collection, management, and filling of mobile forms & apps on Tablets even in remote disconnected areas.”

About Mi-Corporation:

Mi-Corporation, a 15-year industry leader in mobilizing mission-critical business processes, offers enterprise-class applications that quicken business cycles, drive productivity, and increase revenues. Their mobile solutions support the use of Windows 8 Tablets, the Digital Pen, iOS Devices, Android devices, and other mobile devices across diverse industries. Organizations like Eli Lilly, Transport for London, Lightower Fiber Networks, the NC Department of Agriculture, the United Nations, The US Dept. of Transportation, and many others use Mi-Corporation mobile forms, mobile applications, and reporting products.